The Hardest Battle
by PrincessEmmylee
Summary: My first Attack on Titan fic ErenxLevi pairing. Levi ad never seen anything like it, nearly the entire population down with the illness that the harsh winter had brought them. Humanity's strongest finds himself being tested While caring for the one person he loves more than anything. Rated for language use.
1. Chapter 1

A/N This is my first Attack on Titan fanfic, so most likely the characters are going to be off, I'm sorry. Also beware of some adult language, just in case that isn't your thing. This is a LevixEren fic. I am not up to date with the series which may also influence this story. If this isn't your thing, please feel free to not read. For everyone sticking around to check it out, thank you.

To say that Levi was pissed was an understatement. He shoved his hands into his coat pockets, making his way over to Hanji's place. The streets were deserted as he made his way through the newly fallen snow. Winter had never been easy as far as he could recall, this one however had brought everything to a standstill, leaving everyone to wonder about their increasingly harsh conditions brought with them an epidemic that swept through the town faster than Hanji had predicted, with devastating results.

Levi knocked loudly on the door and waited. The arctic wind brushed against him, sending a chill through his body. After another moment of standing there, he sighed heavily, pushing open the door. He stepped inside, closing it behind him.

The room, much to his dismay was a mess. Papers and charts were scattered throughout the space, among them the occasional file folder. Just as he was about to call out, a soft rustling sound caught his attention and he turned to find the researcher appearing from a dimly lit room, pulling the door closed softly behind her. She carried a manila folder which see seemed to be engrossed in.

"You mind telling me what the hell is so important that it couldn't wait until after the meeting, I've got ninety percent of the damn corps down with this thing that's going around and the other ten tied up in looking after everyone else." He grumbled.

Hanji immediately raised her head, moving closer to him.

"That's not our only problem." She replied. "I've been up for the last three days looking through all the notes and any information I could get my hands on to figure this thing out, so far I haven't found anything new and the longer we allow this to progress, who knows how far it'll go. We lost one this morning. The first fatality." She handed the folder to Levi.

The dark haired man took the object.

"This is what couldn't wait until after your meeting."He skimmed through the documents inside. His heart sank.

"Where-"

"Back there." Hanji pointed in the direction she had come from moments ago. Levi handed the folder back and without a word made his way to the door where he paused to collect his thoughts before opening it slowly. Instantly, the figure on the bed caught his eye.

Ignoring Mikasa and Armin, who were now offering a salute. Levi moved closer to the bed. He stood in silence, looking down at the pale, motionless cadet before him.

"Take a break." Levi instructed, "Looks like you've both been here a while. You're not going to be any good to him like that. Get yourselves something to eat and then get some rest."

"W-With all respect, C-"

"That wasn't a request, it's an order."

"I don't think either of us could rest, Sometimes it's hard to tell if he's even breathing and-"

"You're not going to be any good to him if you can't look after yourselves. You two know better than any of us that He's too damn stubborn to die,"Noticing that the titan shifter was attempting to open his eyes, Levi nudged the bed with his foot.

"You dead yet, Jaeger?"Mikasa took a step toward him, only to be stopped by Armin.

"Anyone ever tell you how great your bedside manner is...Sir. I think I'll stick around for a while, just to piss you off."Eren replied in a barely audible voice.

"Mission accomplished. You got a smart mouth, Brat. One day it's going to get you in trouble. doesn't matter to me if you're sick or not, I'll still kick your ass."

"Right, one cough and you'll be running for your precious cleaning supplies. I've seen you cringe when someone around you sneezes or coughs. You-"

"Eren, don't." Armin warned.

"Keep digging yourself into a hole, Jaeger. You'll be in a whole new world of-"

"Captain, please, h-he has a fever, he doesn't know what he's doing."The blond cadet said.

" No excuse, almost everyone has a fever,You know how many of them give me crap, just him. He can't be feeling too bad if he's got the strength to talk back. Now I said for both of you to take a break, I'll be here for a while." The two hesitated, but complied.

"Get some rest, we'll be back later." MIkasa said.

"And please, Eren, just...be careful." Armin followed the dark haired girl from the room, closing the door behind them. Levi reached down, gently pressing his hand to the teen's head, frowning. To Eren's surprise, the older man sat down on the edge of his bed, taking hold of one of the cloths on the bedside table, soaking it in the container of water before squeezing out the extra liquid and using it to gently wipe away the beads of sweat from the cadet's pale face.

"You-"

"Shut up and rest." Levi said as Eren visibly began to relax into the pillows. "I need you to save your strength."

"We should tell them. Armin-" Eren turned his head to cough. He moaned painfully as the sharp pains filled his body.

"If they haven't figured it out by now, I don't think they'll ever get it. I'm not going to sit here and spell it out for them. What I need you to do is tell me why you didn't send someone to get me earlier when you were being moved. Your condition isn't something to play around with. After what happened this afternoon-"

"You heard about that?" Eren asked, he turned once more coughing harshly, pain exploded in his chest and back, causing him to cry out. He found himself fighting to catch his breath. Levi slid his hands behind Eren, helping him to sit up and lowered himself down on the bed,propping himself up against the wall behind them and pulled Eren back gently back against his chest. His heart breaking.

"Yeah, I did, word gets around fast in a place like this. Get some rest, we'll talk about it later."

"D-Don't y-you have-" Levi pressed his lips to the top of his love's head and wrapped his arms around him.

"That's not your problem, Eren. You let me handle it, just do what I told you to do."

"Levi?"

"What?"

I-I feel really weak "Eren admitted, allowing his eyes to close.

"I know you do,Brat. It's been a tough day and it doesn't look like it's going to be letting up anytime soon. You know what's coming tomorrow and I need you to be well rested." Eren raised a shaky hand, placing it on top of Levi's.

"Hey."The younger man said.

"What?"

"what's wrong with you?"

"Besides having nothing to work with, needing to get supplies and living around a bunch of people who are spreading germs everywhere?" Eren gave a short chuckle.

"Yeah, besides all that."The older man rested his chin on Eren's head with a sigh.

"How much time do you have?"

"Looks like I'll be here a while, I got all the time in the world. "

"Good, I have to tell you about this little asshole I work with."

"Yeah?'

"Never does what he's told, reckless, always talks back, can be selfish and he's a damn thief."

"Really?"

"Yeah, little bastard stole my heart, then he went and got sick." Eren smiled faintly.

"Sounds like you got your hands full. You should do something about that kid."

"Don't worry, I plan to. Thinks he can get away with his shit,not for long. I have a few things in store for him."

"I bet you do, Captain Germaphobe."

"Shut it. Tomorrow will be here before you know it..don't piss me off anymore than I already am. "

"You know you love me."Eren said, exhausted by his illness.

"Rest."

"But-"

"I won't ask again."

"You gonna stay?" Eren asked, feeling himself beginning to drift into sleep.

" yeah Brat. I'll be here."Levi said quietly,hoping the night would pass peacefully for the titan shifter.


	2. Chapter 2

Eren groaned softly, his vision blurred as he glanced around the room. He had never felt so much heat as he did now, a fire igniting in his own skin. His stomach churned and ached,a result of having recently been emptied. He was grateful that Levi hadn't been there when it happened.

"Feeling any better?"Hanji's voice caught his attention, though the sound seemed a distance away and slightly distorted, the titan shifter could make out the blurry outline of the woman standing at his bedside.

"No." he replied weakly. Hanji scribbled a few notes into the file with a heavy sigh.

"I know these tests are hard on you right now, I promise to do everything I can to make it all worth it. Do you want something to drink?"

"I don't think I can take anything right now, I really just want to sleep." A sudden coughing fit hit the young man, sending a stabbing pain through his chest, back and ribs. Hanji moved quickly to rearrange his pillows, allowing him to be propped up by them as he struggled to catch his breath.

"Try to take it easy,"She advised. "I'm sorry I can't give you something to make you more comfortable, with everyone stuck in bed and unable to bring anything in, we're pretty low on everything. What little I have isn't even enough for one person. I doubt it'll even make a difference. It'll take a couple of days for the small group that left this morning to get back. We had to round up everyone not suffering from this thing, including civilians, even still there weren't many. The most I can offer you is a cool compress for your fever."Eren gave a short nod.

Hanji dipped one of the cloths into the bowl of lukewarm water, squeezing out the extra liquid and gently stroked Eren's pale, sweaty face. Eren closed his eyes, the cooler temperature felt good to his heated skin. Hanji repeated the action, only this time, placing the object on his titan shifter relaxed into the pillows.

"I wanted to do a few more tests, but I think you've had enough for today. I know you said you didn't really want anything, but in a little while, you need to have a few sips of water. The more dehydrated you are, the worse you'll feel. Fevers can really take a toll on your body, you don't need anymore problems than what you have. We've got a lot of work ahead of us."

"Bet you're just loving that."Eren said softly, he was sure he saw her grin gleefully once or twice throughout the tests, if only briefly before she attempted to conceal it.

"What?" She asked. Eren scoffed, allowing his head to turn to the side.

"Wasn't important." he murmured.

"Well, anyway, you'll be stuck with me for the day, but we'll make the best of it won't we?"

Eren gave no reply. Exhausted by the combination of his illness and the barrage of tests,he allowed his eyes to close, feeling himself drift into the silence.

Hanji picked up her notes, quietly jotting down a list of the tests that still needed to be done as well as Eren's current condition. She frowned knowing there wasn't much to do for the young titan shifter at the moment, nor could she help the others lying in the infirmary.

"Come on, Eren,"She whispered, "You gotta hang in there and help us figure this sound of the door creaking open and the sudden burst of cold air startled the woman. She rose from her chair and made her way to the front door where she met Armin, a small stack of folders held close to his chest, protecting the documents from the harsh wind.

"What do you have for me today?" Hanji asked, taking the folders and gesturing to the chair. Armin took the invitation, thankful to be out of the cold.

"We lost two more just now. Amy Rosenberg and Sarah, you'll have to look up her file for the last name, it wasn't in any of the paperwork I came across. About an hour and a half ago, Amy was awake,she couldn't focus on the questions we asked, her fever spiked, vomiting. She was dehydrated but couldn't take water. Sarah gave us a small list of new symptoms to watch for. Everything's in those files, how's Eren?"

"Exhausted."The dark haired woman replied, leafing through the documents. "He's asleep right now,it's been a tough day. He's been up since early this morning, before Levi took his group out." Armin shook his head.

"I know this is important, but he needs to-"

""I isn't just some illness. We need to figure it out as fast as we can."Hanji interrupted.

"Do you think with his titan abilities..Eren could fight it off?"The concern was clearly audible in the cadet's voice.

"Well, that's the hope, so far they haven't seemed to be much help to him. All we can do is wait and see. So far there hasn't been any significant changes for the better or worse. It might be that the abilities are slowing down the progression of the illness but as of right now, it's hard to know for sure."

"Can I see him, I won't stay long."

"Go on, but before you do, who took over at the infirmary?" Hanji called as Armin stood and began to walk toward the door.

"Connie, but he's not going to be able to stay on active duty long." Armin replied. "He's starting to show signs of the illness."

"Damn it!" Hanji cursed, dropping into her chair. "Can't catch a break"

Armin stood next to the bed, frowning at the sleeping figure before him.

"Hey," He said softly. "I just wanted to stop and check in. I was hoping maybe you'd be feeling a little better. Mikasa went out with Captain Levi's group to see what they can find out there. So far we've managed to get through okay but it won't be long until we're up the proverbial creek." Armin sighed lowering himself onto the chair.

"We're worried about you. You and Mikasa have always been there for me. You're my best friends and...Can you do just one more thing for me Eren, just live. That's all I'm asking for. I'll do whatever you need me to do, just don't give in and I know that's hard, the others they- You're stronger than this, Eren. You have to be. We all need you to be. I can't stay long, it's Connie's turn to help out but he's not doing very well so it's best not to leave him on his own for too long. I needed to know you're okay. It's been a long couple of days, longer for you I'm sure. With any luck we'll figure out how to beat this and everything can get back to normal." Armin leaned back in the chair, hoping Eren would be different.


	3. Chapter 3

Levi dropped the last of the supplies inside the door. It had been a long three days and there was only one place he wanted to be.

"That's the last of it." He told Armin. "Get this sorted through and put away." Armin nodded, he began helping the rest of the small group with the task.

Levi hurried toward Hanji's place, thankful that the snow was no longer falling. Despite the biting wind still brushing against him,the sun was now appearing from behind the clouds.

He didn't bother to knock once he had arrived, pushing open the door and closing it behind him.

"Come on Eren," The slightly muffled voice reached his ears from beyond the door that stood just a short distance away. There was a small pause before Hanji spoke again. "You have to take something, you haven't eaten in days, you've barely touched the water. You can't keep going like this." Levi wasted no time in crossing the room and pushing open the door.

Eren lay in bed propped up by his pillows, the light blanket pulled up almost to his chest with his hands resting on his belly. His pale face turned away from Hanji as she placed the spoon back in the bowl with a frustrated sigh. She set the bowl on the bedside table and rested her head in her hand.

Levi moved to stand by the bed, ignoring Hanji and reaching out to gently stroke Eren's cheek. At his touch, Eren turned his head slowly toward him. The older man lowered himself onto the edge of the bed.

"Hey Brat." He said, brushing back a few strands of hair away from Eren's face. The titan shifter smiled feebly.

"Back already?" he asked, he lacked the strength to speak in his usual volume, his words coming as just a little more than a whisper. .

"Yeah. I told you I wouldn't be gone long. You being stubborn again?"

"Always." Eren replied. "I saved most of it for you, though."

"I bet you did. How are you feeling?"

"Not great."

"I haven't been able to get him to eat at all. He drinks a little here and there but nothing significant."Hanji explained.

"What's your problem, Jaeger?" Eren shook his head slowly.

"Nothing stays down."He replied.

"That doesn't mean you give up. At least try,Eren. Take smaller spoonfuls and give yourself time to-"

"Levi.."Eren shifted uncomfortably in bed.

"What?"

"You don't understand."

"Then help me to." the older man pressed. Eren hesitated.

"Come on Brat, talk to me."

"It really hurts."Levi rested a hand on top of Eren's, giving it a small squeeze.

"What hurts, Eren?" He asked, his tone now slightly softer.

"When I eat or drink, it makes me really sick."The ill teen explained. "When it comes back up, it really hurts. Coughing hurts too."

"Coughing hurts your stomach?"Levi questioned. Eren nodded.

"He was vomiting pretty hard when he was trying to eat, it wouldn't surprise me if he put too much strain on his stomach muscles." Hanji explained. "He probably hurt them. If that's the case, he's going to have a harder time. He's going to need to rest them."

"Geez Brat, you're just all kinds of fucked up, aren't you?" Levi teased. Eren glared up at him.

"Bite me."He scoffed weakly.

"How about I just kick your a-."Levi ruffled Eren's hair.

"Asshole." Eren murmured.

"Little bastard."

"You know you love me."Levi shook his head.

"You wish I did."

"You wish you didn't." Hanji rolled her eyes.

"Alright you two, Eren needs his rest."

"That's not all he needs, He also needs an attitude adjustment, I'll take it from here."

"You sure you want to do that, I mean you just got back today."

"It's fine." Levi confirmed. Hanji gave a short nod.

"If anything changes-"

"I'll handle it. Go take a look through the supplies and see if you can use anything to help keep everyone comfortable until we can figure this shit out. Make a list of things we'll need more of and get it to me later. I'll see what I can do." Hanji nodded, leaving the two alone.

Levi kicked off his shoes.

"Slide over a little." He instructed.

"Maybe you forgot, I'm sick, it's contagious and-"

"News flash, I'm surrounded by this thing since it started. If I'm going to get it, it'll happen either way. Move over."

"Levi-"

"Come on Brat, I'm tired. It's been a long few days."Eren hesitated then relented, wincing as he shifted his body as best he could. The older man pulled his feet onto the bed, leaning back against the pillows and pulling the young man close. Allowing Eren to rest his head on his chest.

"Sounds like it's been rough for you too." Levi kissed Eren's head.

"Could be worse, I guess. How would you feel if you were being poked and prodded for most of the day while you're sick and your stomach hurts, then no one lets you rest, even though they tell you that that's what you need to do?"

"So rest now, I'm not going to let anyone bother you, get some sleep if you can."

" Not sure I'll be able to, My stomach's kind of messed up right now. I'm tired, but I just dont think I can." Levi rested his free hand on Eren's belly, gently rubbing in a circular motion.

"I really missed you." The Titan shifter admitted, closing his eyes. . "Levi?"

"What?" Levi detected a change in Eren's tone.

"While you were gone, a few more people died from this, and I was just thinking that-"

"You're not dying, Eren." Levi interrupted.

"Yeah but...if something happens and I do-"

"You won't."

"Can you just shut up and listen to me?" Eren growled. "It's really important to me that you know this."

"Fine."

"It's not your fault." Eren said. "Promise me you won't blame yourself."

"Nothing to blame myself for, you're not going anywhere."

"Not yet, but if that time comes, you did everything you could for me, and you do make me feel loved I hope you'll remember that I love you and I don't regret this...Us I mean.. I wanted you to know while I was still able to tell you and because a lot of things are left-"

"I love you too, Eren, stop freaking yourself out now. You're going to be just fine."

"I'm not freaking out, I'm just- I don't want you to go through all that. That's all."

"Then don't fucking die and you won't have to worry about it. I do want you to keep trying to take something. I get this is tough, but you have too, for me."Get some sleep."Levi hated seeing Eren in pain and in moments like this, when his love wasn't quite himself, it broke his heart. Eren soon gave into his fatigue, leaving the older man to his thoughts. Levi would give anything for the ability to take the illness from Eren, even if it cost his own life.

"You have to be stronger than this, Brat. I know it's there,"

The following day proved to be more difficult than Levi expected. Eren had woken up throughout the night, his fever spiked and the pain only seemed to get worse. Levi stayed awake to watch over the cadet. He placed a damp, cool cloth on Eren's forehead and sat down on the edge of the bed, taking the teen's hand. After an unsuccessful attempt at getting Eren to eat, Levi's concern grew.

When the titan shifter did sleep, Levi found himself searching through files and comparing notes in the hopes of finding something useful. Maybe Hanji had missed something, maybe the answer had been in front of her and she missed it. Eren had to live, everything was depending on it.


End file.
